The new freshly reconceived “La Cage Aux Folles” will hit the Hobby Center stage from April 24 to May 6 with one of Houston’s very own.

Logan Keslar, who grew up in Liberty attended the Houston School of Performing and Visual Arts, and Theatre Under The Stars Humphreys School of Musical Theatre, is returning to the Houston stage as part of the Cagelles in “La Cage.” A part of the original cast of the 2010 Broadway revival, Keslar is now performing the classic musical comedy across the country.

“La Cage Aux Folles” tells the story of Georges (George Hamilton) the owner of a glitzy nightclub in lovely Saint-Tropez, and his partner Albin (Christopher Sieber), who moonlights as the glamorous chanteuse Zaza. When Georges' son brings his fiancée's conservative parents home to meet the flashy pair, the bonds of family are put to the test. Audiences will also remember the storyline of “La Cage” from the 1996 movie “The Birdcage.”

Kesler grew up in Liberty where he danced in a small dance studio and performed in a community theater. It was until he started coming to Houston, did he have access to more intensive training and bigger opportunities.

“Even before I started going into Houston though,” Keslar said. “I knew all I wanted was to be on Broadway.”

He started coming into Houston for dance and acting classes during middle school. It started as a once a week thing, but by the time he started HSPVA it turned into an everyday trip. This commute was a challenge for Keslar and his family, who were all busy with their own activities.

“I’m the middle child,” he said. “I have an older brother and a younger sister who are also incredibly active growing up. Luckily my parents were really great about sharing all of that, multitasking, and getting everyone where they need to be.”

The first community theater show he performed in was the “Wizard of Oz” where Keslar played the role of the Munchkin Mayor. His first production at TUTS was “Grand Hotel “when he was around eleven years old.

“That’s not even a kids show,” he said. “I don’t think there are usually kids in it. I was playing a bellboy. It’s a very dark musical, but I really loved it. I think doing that is what sparked a fire in me that I just felt so lucky to be able to be working with these professional people from New York.”

He believes working with professionals in shows like the ones he performed in at TUTS helped him realize that his dream wasn’t so out of reach for him. HSPVA, he feels, gave him the training he needed to go out, audition and get work.

He’s also proud he got to go to HSPVA and be a part of that school not only for the training, but for the self-confidence it gives students.

“I think it’s also really important for kids and teens to be able to be in a school where they’re allowed to be who they want to be and live as they want and no one has a problem with that,” he said. “It’s more about your character, who you are, and developing as a person.”

He felt HSPVA allowed him to grow up and find his voice. Because of his experiences at the school, he learned the skills needed to graduate from school and start working on his career.

After he graduated from HSPVA in 2005, he worked with a director, choreographer and fellow HSPVA graduate Michael Tapley in Kansas City. There he worked on a production of “Footloose” with Tapley who he had grown up working with in Houston. After the summer, Keslar moved to New York City, N.Y. and started working there.

In New York City, he worked at several regional theaters. He also worked in the 15th anniversary production of “West Side Story” in London and toured the production internationally.

Keslar said being a part of the 2010 Broadway revival of “La Cage Aux Folles” was surreal and a dream come true. He said he put a lot of pressure on himself during each performance to make sure he was always at his best and focused.

“It’s a really incredible feeling when you do something that you’ve always told yourself you’re going to do and wanted to do,” he said.

The direction of the Cagelles in this production was different than in previous productions of “La Cage Aux Folles.” In earlier productions, the Cagelles were put together similarly to the Rockettes, where each dancer is uniform. For this production though, the Cagelles were cut down from 12 to six dancers and each given distinct personalities and characteristics.

He said with this approach the Cagelles are more free and loose, which pushed him continually as a performer to create and explore something new every performance.

Keslar knew what he looked like done up as a showgirl because he had performed in two production of “La Cage” regionally in New York before. He said the experience for this production was different though because of the hair and make-up designer Richard Mawbey. Mawbey is considered a legend and has worked extensively in hair, make-up and wigs in theatre, opera and television productions for over 30 years.

As a native Texan, Keslar made the one request for his wig the first time Mawbey did his hair and make-up.

“Everybody refers to it as my big Texas pageant hair because I just have this huge wig with dark roots,” he said. “It’s perfect.”

After the show closed on Broadway, Keslar was asked to go on tour. He wasn’t sure at first if he wanted to continue with the tour.. A huge part that convinced him to commit to the national tour though was the story and message of the show, which is about love, family, acceptance and being true to yourself.

“I think that all of those things are really important in our world and country today.,” he said. “I think that’s also another huge reason that I’m continuing this show - because I believe in that so much. I believe in the message of the show and I think it’s important for people to see and be reminded of that.”

The last time Keslar was back in Houston was last summer after “La Cage Aux Folles” closed on Broadway. In between the show closing and the national tour starting, he spent time in Houston acting in the TUTS’ production of “Urban Cowboy.”

“I feel so lucky I have such a great family at Theatre Under The Stars that I can come down and do a show for a month and then come back,” he said. “It’s nice to be home and see my family because they all still live there. It’s nice to come home and touch base and slow down a little bit.”